Short Communication Mediterranean Marine Science Indexed in WoS (Web of Science, ISI Thomson) and SCOPUS The journal is available on line at http://www.medit-mar-sc.net DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12681/mms.18914

The collection of an exuvia identified asPanulirus longipes longipes (A. Milne-Edwards, 1868) from off Haifa, Israel

Ehud SPANIER1 and Erik FRIEDMANN2

1 Department of Maritime Civilizations and the Leon Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies, The Leon H. Charney School for Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, 199 Aba-Khoushi Avenue, Mount Carmel, Haifa 3498838, Israel 2 7th Pinhas Rosen St., Haifa 3478405, Israel

Corresponding author: [email protected]

Handling Editor: Argyro ZENETOS

Received: 18 October 2018; Accepted: 22 January 2019; Published on line: 30 April 2019

Abstract

An exuvia of an adult female spiny was found off the coast of Haifa, Israel. The finding was identified as a moult of the Indo-pacific long-legged , longipes longipes (A. Milne-Edwards, 1868) of the western spotted-legged form. The specimen is described and possible explanations associated with the finding of this tropical lobster from the Levant are discussed.

Keywords: Panulirus longipes longipes; Non-indigenous species; exuvia; Crustacea; Palinuridae; Levant.

Introduction colours) single exuvia of an adult spiny lobster was found. The depth, water temperature, and the GPS data of the lo- Two species of spiny are reported from the cation site were recorded as well as the geomorphology Mediterranean Sea, (Fabricius, 1787) of the site. The exuvia was carefully removed from the and Palinurus mauritanicus Gruvel, 1911 (Holthuis, water, photographed and then kept in refrigeration until 1991; Cannas et al., 2006). They have only a westerly measurements of Carapace Length (CL), Carapace Width distribution as neither species appear to be found in the (CW) and Total Length (TL) as well as determining the extreme eastern and south eastern areas of the Mediter- sex of the specimen, were conducted. Identification was ranean (Holthuis, 1991). Galil et al. (1989), however, re- confirmed using Williams (1986), Holthuis (1991), Chan corded a single find of an indo-pacific lobster, Panulirus & Chu (1996), Chan & Ng (2001) and Anam & Mostarda ornatus (Fabricius, 1798), from the coastal waters of Isra- (2012). el in 1988. The purpose of the present study is to report an exuvia of an adult female spiny lobster, of another species of Panulirus, found while diving off the coast of Haifa, Results Israel. Systematic Account

Material and Methods Infraorder: Palinuridea Latreille, 1802 Superfamily: Palinuroidea Latreille, 1802 Collection details Family: Palinuridae Latreille, 1802 Genus: Panulirus White, 1847 During a diurnal SCUBA diving activity of the sec- Panulirus longipes (A. Milne Edwards, 1868) ond author, on April 18th, 2018, in search for the noc- Figs. 1-2. turnal common lionfish, Pterois miles (Bennett, 1828), a Lessepsian non indigenous species (Golani & Sonin, Synonymy 1992., Bilge et al., 2017), in rocky caves and crevices us- Palinurus femoristriga von Martens, 1872. ing underwater flashlight, approximately 1500 m off the Palinurus longitarsus Lenz & Richters, 1881 (erroneous southern coast of Haifa, the northern Mediterranean coast spelling of P. longipes). Senex femoristriga – Ortmann, of Israel, a complete, apparently fresh (strong shinning 1891.

Medit. Mar. Sci., 20/1, 2019, 227-229 227 Panulirus bispinosus Borradaile, 1899. an sandstone that forms a rocky substrate locally known Panulirus japonicus longipes – De Man, 1916. as ‘‘Kurkar’’, rich with crevices, ledges and caves. The bottom is composed of coarse biogenic sand and gravel. Water temperature at the site was 19°C. Material examined

The exuvia (Fig. 1) was found at noon time on April Diagnosis 11th, 2018 at a depth of 15 m under a rocky shelf approxi- mately 3 m inside this ledge in a dark area. The arched dis- This specimen was identified as a female by the gono- tance from the collection site (32. 49169° N, 34. 56571° phores set at the bases of the third pair of the walking E) to the opening of the nearby Port of Haifa (head of legs and the chela at the end of each of the fifth pair of the breakwater) is approximately 7.8 kilometres. The ge- legs (pereopods). The female was identified as Panulirus omorphology of the area is governed by cemented aeoli- according to the long flagella of the antennulae which is longer than the peduncle of antennule (Fig. 1) (Holthuis, 1991). As in other spiny lobsters, the carapace is round- ed without a distinct median rostrum, ornamented with spines and granules of various sizes. Each eye is protect- ed by a strong, spiny frontal projection of the carapace (frontal horn). The bases of the antennae are separated by a broad antennular plate. Typical to the species Panu- lirus longipes (A. Milne Edwards, 1868), this antennular plate bears 2 widely separated large spines, with scat- tered small spinules behind these (Fig. 2). Exopods of the third maxilliped are present. Each somite of the pleon is with a complete transverse groove joining the pleural groove. Legs 1 to 4 are without pinchers. No pubescent area on the pleonal somites behind the transverse groove. Fig. 1: The exuvia of Panulirus longipes longipes (TL = 305 Anterior margin of pleura of pleonal somite two is without mm) shortly after being removed from the water (Photographed distinct teeth. Transverse groove of the pleonal somites is by E. Friedmann). with straight margins, not crenulated. Transverse grooves of pleonal somites 2 to 4 join the groove along the anteri- or margin of the corresponding pleuron (Holthuis, 1991; Anam & Mostarda, 2012). Two subspecies can be rec- ognized: 1) Panulirus longipes longipes (A. Milne-Ed- wards, 1868) is the western form occurring from East Af- rica to Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines and Indonesia and 2) the eastern subspecies Panulirus longipes femoris- triga (von Martens, 1872) inhabiting Japan, the Moluc- cas, New Guinea, eastern Australia, New Caledonia and Polynesia. Intermediate forms have been observed, espe- cially in the area of overlap between the two ranges (Hol- thuis, 1991; Chan & Chu, 1996). The two “forms” differ only in the colour pattern of the pereiopods (Chan & Chu, 1996): the western spotted-legged, P. l. longipes as the present exuvia (Fig. 1) and the eastern striped-legged, P. l. femoristriga. Chan & Ng (2001) corrected the name of the latter subspecies to P. longipes bispinosus Borra- daile, 1899 (Pacific, with striped legs). Both subspecies have both their antennular flagella banded (e.g., Fig. 1). The name for the species with the white inner antennular flagellum should be, according to these authors, P. femo- ristriga (Von Martens, 1872), with P. albiflagellum Chan & Chu, 1996, as its junior subjective synonym.

Brief description

CL= 97 mm, CW= 81 mm, TL = 305 mm. These di- Fig. 2: The antennular plate of the exuvia of Panulirus longipes mensions are typical to fully grown adults of this spe- longipes (Photographed by E. Spanier). cies (Holthuis, 1991). The exuvia was found without any

228 Medit. Mar. Sci., 20/1, 2019, 227-229 signs of biofouling. Colour: ground colour – dark-reddish the English editing of the 1st draft of this manuscript. The brown. Body, and especially the pleon, covered with nu- authors are also grateful to Professor Mark J. Butler, IV merous distinct medium–sized, yellowish - white round (Department of Biological Sciences, Old Dominion Uni- spots with larger ocellated white spots on each segment versity, Norfolk, Virginia, USA) as well as to an anony- in a row alongside and a central darker region on the cara- mous reviewer of an earlier version of the present paper pace. Antennular flagella are cross–banded; legs are dark- for their helpful advice and suggestions. Thanks are due brown with white spots and light incomplete longitudinal also to Eran Shushu Spanier for his help in preparing the yellowish lines in between (Fig.1). Telson and uropods illustrations for publication. are yellow with darker margins. Carapace is covered with many spines of variable sizes, black-brown, black and white and yellow-reddish in colouration. The large fron- References tal horns are black with white spots (Figs. 1 and 2). The broad antennular plate and the base of the antennae are Anam, R., Mostarda, E., 2012. Field identification guide to the purple; the 2 widely separated large spines on the broad living marine resources of Kenya. FAO. 357 pp. antennular plate and the small scattered spinules behind Bilge, G., Filiz, H., Yapıcı, S., 2017. Occurrences of Pterois these are yellow with brown bases and tips (Fig. 2). miles (Bennett, 1828) between 1992 and 2016 from Turkey and the Mediterranean Sea. Journal of the Black Sea/Medi- terranean Environment, 23 (3), 201-208. Discussion Butler, M.J., Steneck, R.S., Herrnkind, W.F., 2006. Juvenile and adult ecology. p. 263-309. In: Lobsters: biology, manage- Contrary to the P. ornatus Galil et al. (1989), recorded ment, aquaculture and fisheries. Phillips, B.C. (Ed). Black- in this same area in the 1980s, the, seemingly, fresh exu- well Publishing, Oxford, UK. via found in the present study is devoid of biofouling and Cannas, R., Cau, A., Deiana, A.M., Salvadori, S., Tagliavini, suggests it was recently released from an aquarium where J., 2006. Discrimination between the Mediterranean spiny biofouling activities were minimal. The site where the ex- lobsters Palinurus elephas and P. mauritanicus (Crustacea: uvia was found, deep in a dark shelter, is typical a com- ) by mitochondrial sequence analysis. Hydrobio- mon moulting habitat of Panulirus species (Butler et al., logia, 557, 1-4. 2006). Thus, we assume that this lobster moulted under Chan T.Y., Chu, K.H., 1996. On the different forms of Panuli- the ledge leaving behind an intact exuvia. However, this rus longipes femoristriga (von Martens, 1872) (Crustacea: species, as other colourful spiny lobsters, are used in the Decapoda: Palinuridae), with description of a new species. aquaria trade (e.g., Friese, 1984). Thus, one cannot reject Journal of Natural History, 30 (3), 367-387. the possibility that the exuvia had been disposed of from Chan, T.Y., Ng, P.K.L., 2001. On the nomenclature of the com- an aquarium of a slow moving (so that it would have re- mercially important spiny lobsters Panulirus longipes fem- mained fully intact and undamaged) passing cruise-ship oristriga (Von Martens, 1872), P. bispinosus Borridaile, or a pleasure yacht entering or exiting the close-by Haifa 1899, and P. albiflagellum Chan & Chu, 1996 (Decapoda, Port. The issue of the source of the exuvia can be solved Palinuridae). Crustaceana, 74 (1), 123-127. only when more evidence is found. If the moult was re- Friese, U.E., 1984. for the home aquarium. Tropi- ally fresh as its strong colours have indicated (although cal Fish Hobbyist, 33 (3), 70-77. these lobsters can also keep the colour for a very long Galil, B., Pisanty, S., Spanier, E., Tom, M., 1989. The Indo-Pa- time), the adult may still be found in the vicinity. Inten- cific lobster (Fabricius, 1798) (Crusta- sive and repetitive SCUBA diving searches in the general cea: Decapoda) a new Lessepsian migrant to the Eastern location of the find since April 2018, as well as wide- Mediterranean. Israel Journal of Zoology, 35, 241-243. spread inquiry among professional and sport fishermen Golani, D., Sonin, O., 1992. New records of the Red Sea fish- in the area have been, so far, fruitless. es, Pterois miles (Scorpaenidae) and Pteragogus pelycus (Labridae) from the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Japanese Journal of Ichthyology, 39 (2), 167-169. Acknowledgements Holthuis, L.B., 1991. FAO Species Catalogue, Marine Lobsters of the World. FAO Fisheries Synopsis 12513, FAO, Rome, We would like to thank Dr. Jason S. Goldstein (Wells 292 pp. National Estuarine Research Reserve, Maine, USA) and Williams, A.B., 1986. Lobster-identification, world distribution Dr. Dor Edelist (Department of Maritime Civilizations, and US trade. Marine Fisheries Review, 48, 1-36. University of Haifa, Israel) for their useful comments and

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